Can Sacramento break medpot deadlock?

California lawmakers continue to struggle over regulating medical marijuana, nearly 20 years after state voters defied federal law and permitted patients with a doctor’s prescription to use the illegal drug to ease chronic pain, anxiety and depression.

The latest battle in the Capitol centers around a renewed push this week by cities and police for legislation to impose tighter controls on the entire industry, from the growing fields to the doctor’s office to the corner shop. Resistance is coming in from doctors, who see it as state meddling in medicine, and from those who favor more lenient limits.

Proposed state regulations have been contentious ever since voters in 1996 approved the nation’s first “Compassionate Use Act.” Proposition 215 allows ill people to use marijuana with a physician recommendation. Seven years later, lawmakers passed legislation allowing patients and primary caregivers to grow small amounts for personal use. That measure also launched the identification card for those in need.

But it’s widely agreed that enforcement has been haphazard. Dispensaries in some areas have sprung up like corner Starbucks. Doctor recommendations are readily dispensed. And many patients have only trust when it comes to knowing exactly what the marijuana is and at what strength.

California’s medical marijuana industry “is out of control. It is in chaos and it may be corrupt,” warned Chula Vista Police Chief David Bejarano, one of those urging lawmakers to crack down.

But Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, contends the city-police legislation goes too far. Ammiano has introduced a competing bill that would also establish a regulatory framework that he says epitomizes the spirit of voter intent and does not tell doctors how to practice medicine.

Cities and police “have been hiding their heads in the sand and are finally waking up to the reality of medical marijuana,” said Ammiano, whose past attempts to implement less-stringent controls have been blocked by critics who say those provisions could have liberalized some standards.

The dueling measures are scheduled to be tested this week after talks on both continued during the recent spring recess.

The city-police backed legislation will be heard by the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee on Monday. ﻿Ammiano’s counter measure undergoes its first test the next day before the Assembly Public Safety Committee. Substantial amendments are anticipated and the outcome remains uncertain.

The bills do have one important point in common: neither pre-empt local ordinances, supporters say. For example, the recently enacted city of San Diego regulation will remain intact regardless. Both measures also include mechanisms to levy fees.

Berjarano, the police chief, said cities and law enforcement are trying to clean up abuses and install regulatory safeguards to protect the health of legitimate users.

“We don’t want to deny access to patients who need it,” he said.

Dispensaries are primarily cash-only, making the business and customers an attractive target for thieves, Bejarano said.

“It’s a challenge for us,” he said.

Chris McKenzie, executive director of the League of California Cities, is just as adamant. He said it’s important to establish standards for growing, distributing and selling. For example, there are no labeling standards to identify how the pot was grown, what exactly is in it, and potency.

“Patients have no way of knowing what they are getting,” he said.

Sen. Lou Correa, D-Anaheim, acknowledged that his measure’s push to clarify the role of doctors is controversial.

“They are the ones giving the recommendations,” Correa said. “They need to be part of the solution.” The California Medical Association, a powerful voice in the Capitol and major campaign contributor, did not responded to requests for comment.

Correa’s Senate Bill 1262, as it now stands, would broaden the California Medical Board’s role by directing it to establish standards doctors would have to follow before recommending marijuana to patients. It also would require facilities to comply with health and safety, and quality assurance standards to prevent contaminants. That would be placed under the authority of the state Department of Public Health. It would push shops to abandon cash-only payments and implement other security measures.

Ammiano’s latest measure, Assembly Bill 1894, would also tap the existing Medical Board. But his bill would emphasize policing “rogue” doctors who freely hand out recommendations rather than have the board impose restrictions on all physicians.

Ammiano also wants the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) to take the lead oversight role by regulating and taxing shops.

The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) opposes Correa’s bill, saying it intrudes into patient rights and would improperly regulate doctors, among other flaws. It will likely endorse Ammiano’s measure, or a compromise, according to Dale Gieringer, director of California NORML.

“We remain hopeful that the Legislature will approve a satisfactory regulation bill this year,” Gieringer said.

Meanwhile, California’s marijuana advocates are preparing to try again to legalize pot through a 2016 ballot measure. Voters in 2010 rejected Proposition 19 to allow its recreational use.

Gov. Jerry Brown does not appear supportive of legalized recreational use, but has sent no signals on further regulating medical marijuana.

Recently he made off-the-cuff remarks regarding the legal recreational use of marijuana — a step taken by Washington state and Colorado recently.

“I’d really like those two states to show us how it’s going to work,” Brown said during a television interview. “The problem with anything is a certain amount is OK, but there is a tendency to go to extremes.”